LatAm Steel Industry Recovers to Meet Higher Demand

The steel industry in Latin American countries is seen gradually recovering from pandemic impacts to meet higher demand, said the latest report published by the Latin American Steel Association (ALACERO).

The sector activity is far from returning to the levels prior to the Covid-19 crisis. However, the restart of furnaces and expansion of steel operations by mills in the region is a positive sign. The crude steel production by the region during the month of August witnessed a surge by 7.9% from the prior month. However, upon comparison with August 2019, the production is still down by 2.4%.

The increase in production during August was mainly driven by Brazil, Mexico and Argentina. The production of long steel rolled products was up by 9.5%, whereas the rolled flats production was up by 15.9%. Meantime, seamless tube production registered year-on-year decline by almost 63%.

At the same time, the regional steel consumption grew by 2.9% in July month-on-month, triggered by improved consumption in countries such as Argentina, Colombia, Mexico and Brazil. The cumulative steel consumption by the region stood lower by 15.4% over the previous year from January to July in 2020.

Francisco Leal, CEO of Alacero noted that the industry is recovering with higher demand to keep up with the increased demand.